DiGiCo scores as final whistle blows at FIFA Confederations Cup

For football fans sad at the lack of a FIFA World Cup or UEFA European Championship this summer, the FIFA Confederations Cup provided ample compensation. Hosted by current holders Brazil, the colourful closing ceremony was mixed on a DiGiCo SD8 console.

Seen by many observers as a ‘dry run’ for Brazil hosting next year’s World Cup, the home team emerged victorious on the pitch, beating current World and European champions Spain 3-0 in the tournament final.

Held at Rio’s iconic Maracana Stadium, prior to the final’s kick off, the closing ceremony demonstrated the city’s well-founded reputation for a colourful party. Loudness Sound Rental & Services was tasked with supplying the audio system for the ceremony, choosing a DiGiCo SD8, plus an L-Acoustics PA and Shure wireless microphones and IEMs.

“A big challenge for us was the project only being confirmed very close to the date for getting the system in and setting it up,” says Loudness Sound Rental & Services’ Fernanda Lemos. “The sound quality and reliability of the SD8 were major reasons for choosing it, of course, but in these circumstances its fast setup and user-friendliness were very important.”

Manned by experienced DiGiCo user Celson Prado, the SD8 was used to mix live audio for the stadium audience, as well as sending feeds to FIFA-appointed host broadcaster HBS.

18 inputs were required - playback from one DJ and live vocals from a number of singers - with 36 outputs feeding the L-Acoustics PA, the stadium’s installed PA (used as delays for the main system), artist IEMs, sidefills, HBS broadcast and communication with the ceremony’s choreographers.

“Although it was a fairly straightforward setup, it was a really technical challenge as we only had a short time to study the venue and to integrate our system into it,” says Fernanda. “We had to get the ideal sound image, whilst abiding by FIFA’s rules about speaker positions, SPL levels and other issues.

“The SD8’s flexibility helped a lot as the various feeds had to be so different, depending on where they were being sent. We had separate sends for many parts of the stadium in order to get the best results, and it ended up being a very large design.”

The DiGiCo console made a significant contribution to ensuring the ceremony was a success, paving the way for the World Cup next year.

“We were happy with the results,” Fernanda concludes.

“We are now looking forward to the 2014 World Cup, which we will be able to spend more time preparing for, and do it even better.”

About Gasoline Media

Owner and director, Sarah James, has worked in the AV/entertainment technology industry for over 25 years, initially in publishing at Disco International and Live! Magazines, moving into public relations in 1993 and setting up Gasoline Media in 2000.